Solutions for mastering upper - Secondary students’ performance in using the english articles

“Solutions for Mastering Upper-secondary Students’ Performance in Using 
the English Articles”
PART I: INTRODUCTION
I. Rationale for selecting the topic of the study:
An English sentence is obviously a grammatical unit that is constituted of a set of various parts of speech. One of these sentence compositions can undoubtedly be the English articles.
In fact, the English articles seem to be such simple words that they receive relatively little attention. Despite their highly frequent appearance in both spoken and written English, the acquisition of the complex article system remains one of the biggest challenges for learners of English as a foreign language learners, especially Vietnamese students. Sometimes, it is also difficult for teachers to teach the English articles effectively. 
At the Upper-secondary Level of Education in Vietnam, the English articles are taught to students in Grades 10 and 12. However, this content is only a minor part of the language focus lesson (Unit 13, English 10, and Unit 8, English 12) with a quite monotonous form of practice (gap-filling). After the students have been taught the articles in these two periods, there is no further educational process about English articles. Students are then likely to reduce their attention to the use of articles no matter if it is in their oral or written English, unless they come across a task testing their ability to use articles in an English test. In addition, teachers will gradually pay little attention to noticing whether students are using English articles in a correct way. Most of the time, teachers will not correct the errors of using incorrect articles in their students’ utterance or written work, because this kind of errors is not believed to result in misunderstanding or to affect the meaning very much. All of these lead to a consequence that students can still not fully acquire the use of the English articles even if they are advanced or gifted students.
As the teaching, learning and acquisition of the English articles have always 
posed problems to the learners; hence, the topic “Solutions for Mastering Upper-secondary Students’ Performance in Using the English Articles” has been studied to find out more suitable teaching techniques and approaches in teaching the articles so that the teaching and learning process of the articles will be more effective.
II. Purposes of the study:
 	This study has been conducted with a strong desire that it can help raise students’ awareness of the meaning and importance the correct use of the English articles in everyday communications, in written English, as well as in their tests and examinations. On that basis, they can have more opportunities to consolidate the knowledge about the articles thoroughly through a detailed and logical system of adequate theoretical contents and typical skills to solve problems related to this topic for them to learn, use and apply in practice rapidly and productively. And then, as a result, they will gradually be able to master their performance in using the articles. Furthermore, with this experience initiative, I hope to contribute some of my personal ideas on the use of the English article system to teaching experience sources for my teacher colleagues to use as a reference in the English teaching process in general.
III. Objects of the study:
	This teaching experience initiative specially focus on researching and analyzing problems or difficulties that students encounter in using the English articles, and finding out possible solutions to these problematic issues.
IV. Scope of the study:
	The topic was studied in the English programme for the upper-secondary students at Mai Anh Tuan High School in the school-year 2016-2017, and through English tests, examinations of all kinds in the recent years. 
V. Bases and of the study:
	The experience initiative has been studied based on my own practical teaching experiences, referring to documents related to the researched topic, including database from the internet, observing other teachers’ lessons, and consulting my colleagues.
PART II: DEVELOPMENT
	To improve high school students’ performance in using the English articles, first and foremost, it is necessary to investigate and analyze students’ difficulties related to the use of this part of speech and their negative impacts. Afterward, the previously analyzed problems will help find out possible solutions to better the situations.
A. Problems facing students in using the articles:
 	After the process of investigation and research through teaching my own classes, observing my colleagues’ classes, studying references, consulting other teachers of English about the researched topic, and results of various kinds of tests that my student participants have done, it can be seen that learners of English as a foreign language are faced with a wide range of difficulties in using the English articles. The problems may be caused by the first language interference or the intra-lingual factors of English. These factors, whether internal or external, make the task of mastery difficult for learners of English to achieve, and can have a negative effect on their proficiency. Among problems facing students, there are the following emergent tendencies:
I. Article omission (lack of an article or no article):
Needless to say, English and Vietnamese are the two languages with so many significant differences. However, when learning English, Vietnamese students naturally tend to have a habit of using their mother tongue in the thinking process instead of the language that is being studied. It is this habit that can put their production of the new language to a lot of trouble. Moreover, among the parts of speech forming English sentences, the articles are only little words, hence, it is not very surprising when problems as follow appear when students try to transform Vietnamese word by word to English. 
Because of language thinking in the mother tongue, Vietnamese students tend to transform their own language word by word to English when they want to use English to express and convey their ideas. The transformation is simply performed based on expressions and sentence structures of the Vietnamese language, without appearance of the English articles. Moreover, Vietnamese has no exact parallels of articles to English, so learners nearly have no notion or a vague notion of this part of speech. How can they use the English articles in communications when they do not know the existence of these words? For example, such sentences as the following are quite frequently spoken or written by Vietnamese students:
 a. In future, I want to become doctor.-Trong tương lai, tôi muốn trở thành bác sĩ.
 b. My friend has given interesting book to me.-Bạn của tôi đã tặng cuốn sách cho tôi.
In the example a, in front of “future” and “doctor” should be the articles “the” and “a”, and in b, “an” should stand right before “interesting book”. The majority of people may not get trouble understanding the meaning of these sentences, however, to ones with a little knowledge of English, the utterances seem unusual, and less natural.
	Moreover, generalizing rules of article use from examples students have learnt somewhere can also lead to article deletion. For instance, after listening or reading such sentences produced by native speakers or writers as “We had a wonderful holiday in Italy, a country in southern Europe.” or “China has so many famous historical places.” or “France was the host nation of the 1998 World Cup.”, learners recognize that there are no articles before the name of countries, which may become a rule for them to apply. As a result, they can leave out the articles in their sentences:
	a. Some of my friends are living and studying in USA.
 	b. Philippines is a country consisting of a group of islands in South East Asia.
In the examples previously mentioned, “the” should come before “USA” and “Philippines” simply because these are exceptions of the rule formed by students. 
In addition, lack of knowledge about features of nouns or noun phrases (whether they are definite or indefinite, countable or uncountable, singular or plural) may also lead to the tendency of omitting the articles, for example:
a. Thank you for your dinner. Soup was really delicious.
	b. Television is effective means of communication.
In a, students may easily realize the noun “soup” is uncountable, but it is also definite, so “The” should come before it. In b, “means” is indefinite singular noun, however, its 
plural form is the same, so the article an is left out.
II. Article overuse (Unnecessary insertion of articles):
	Vietnamese students in an attempt to transform Vietnamese word by word to the second language not only leave out the articles, but also use this part of speech where it is not needed. The overuse is often caused by students’ limitations in recognizing whether the nouns or noun phrases that the articles precede are countable or uncountable, definite or indefinite, for instance:
That’s a great news. - Đó là một tin tuyệt vời.
This the house is going to be demolished. -Ngôi nhà này sắp sửa bị phá hủy.
In the previous examples, the articles “a” and “the” should not be there. The reason for this overuse is student’s understanding that “một” in Vietnamese is corresponding to “a/an” in English, in addition, in Vietnamese, “tin - news” is a countable noun, and “Ngôi nhà này” is a specific noun which is thought to need a definite English articles.
	Another reason for article overuse may be inflexible overgeneralization of an article using rule and lack of flexibility in applying a set of rules to a certain situation. For example, on the basis of a rule that the article “the” precedes a noun or noun phrase referring something unique, students probably write or say something like that:
	a. The Vietnam is my sweet home country.
	b. Nothing on the earth can persuade me to believe you.
In the first situation, students tend to think that there is only one Vietnam in the world. Also, in the second one, there is only one earth in existence. Therefore, they misuse the article “the” in both cases, without noticing that proper names of such countries as Vietnam need no articles and “on earth” is an idiom used after negative nouns or 
pronouns to emphasize what is being said.
	One more reason for article overuse can be that students have no thorough 
 understanding of important features of nouns or noun phrases which decide whether the articles are used or not, for instance:
The doctors are people who treat the sick or injured.
A love can cause a lot of suffering.
In a, the noun “doctor” refers to all doctors in general, not specific ones, so “The” 
should not be there. In b, “love” expresses a general idea and it an uncountable noun, 
therefore, “A” should be omitted.
III. Confusion about the articles:
	One of the most problematic issues in using the English articles would undoubtedly be making wrong choices of articles. The significant causes of this incorrect selection may be the following:
1. Confusion between the and a/an:
The English articles are dependent words on nouns or noun phrases they precede, hence that students confuse the with a/an is eventually the problem of distinguishing definite and indefinite nouns/ noun phrases, or specific and general ideas. This confusion would lead to using the instead of a/an where needed or vice versa. The examples below can clearly show students’ uncertainty about the use of the 
English articles.
	a. My cousin’s garden looks so nice. I wish to have such the garden.
	b. Would your son like a present we have bought for him?
	c. To attend this formal party, you need the elegant dress.
	d. I was very impressed with an omelet you made for me.
In the first example, the noun “garden” appears twice, so the second “garden” seems to be believed to be a definite noun while it, in fact, is indefinite. In b, “present” is specific because both the speaker and the listener already know it, however, it is only used once, which makes students think they have an indefinite noun here. Also, in c and d, students misunderstand definiteness and indefiniteness of the noun and noun 
phrase, which results in their wrong choice of articles. 
2. Confusion between a and an:
Nouns or noun phrases coming after the indefinite articles a and an have a number of features in common. The basic difference between using a and an is that a is used in front of a noun or noun phrase starting with a consonant and an stands before a noun or noun phrases starting with a vowel. Vietnamese learners are likely to think that sounds and their letters are the same. It is this tendency that causes students’ 
confusion between a and an or vice versa, for instance:
 	a. A honest man always tells the truth.
 	b. Linh has applied to an university in Hanoi. 
In the previous cases, “h” in “honest” is a silent sound, so the noun phrase begins with the vowel /ɒ/, “u” in the noun “uniform” is pronounced /ju:/. Hence, the noun phrase “honest man” is preceded by an rather than a, and the noun “uniform” is preceded by a instead of an.
Generally, the majority of students’ problems in using the English articles are resulted from their inappropriate learning process, lack of knowledge or understanding of the English article system, including fundamental concepts and rules, and incorrect application of a rule or a set of rules in using these articles. 
B. Suggested problem solutions:
	Students’ mastery of using English, in general, can actually be seen as a big achievement resulted from the effective combination of multiple factors. To have a multiple-part product of language with a high quality, each of constituents must be standardized, qualitative, and specially free of all the problems, even minor errors in using such little words as the English articles. Hence, problem-solving would really become urgent and important to have opportune solutions to the problematic issues 
involved. Below are some suggested ones:
I. Theory:
I. A. To teachers:
	Teachers are believed to play a very important role in the teaching-learning process. Therefore, it is necessary for teachers to find out possible solutions to achieve expected results.
	Firstly, before class, teachers should inform students of the topic of the next lesson to draw students’ attention to the contents they are going to learn. Also, teachers themselves need to make careful preparations for the lesson they are going to give. 
	Secondly, in class, teachers should present the lesson contents logically, 
scientifically, and briefly with clear explanations and positive teaching approaches such as Teaching the articles based on contexts, Teaching the articles based on real life situations, Teaching the articles using realia, Teaching the articles using pictures, and Encouraging students to do speaking and writing practice regularly, 
 	Next, teachers must suggest, guide, encourage and join students in completing as an comprehensive and adequate overview of the English articles and their rules of use as possible. The collective achievement gained would probably be a useful reference document for all of them in the process of learning and using the English articles. 
Overview of the English articles
1. Definition of the English Articles: 
	In English, an article is a grammatical element used to indicate definiteness or indefiniteness of a noun or noun phrase that it precedes [1].
There are two types of the English Articles: the two indefinite articles (a and an), and the definite article (the).
2. Nouns/ Noun phrases preceded by the articles:
	It is necessary for students to understand the features of nouns or noun phrases because whether an article or no article is used before a noun or noun phrase mainly depends on the nature of this noun or noun phrase. 
2.1. Definite and indefinite nouns/ noun phrases: 
- A definite noun/ noun phrase is a noun/ noun phrase referring to:
+ a particular member of a group or class, the uniquely specified thing or the things that have already been mentioned.
Ex: She is the nicest girl in my village./The moon moves round the sun.
 I have bought a new motorbike. The motorbike was made in Vietnam.
+ the person/thing or people/things that both the speaker or writer and the listener or reader have already known.
Ex: The computer you gave me still works well. 
- An indefinite noun/ noun phrase is a noun/ noun phrase referring to:
+ a person/thing, or people/things that can be any one of several different people/things 
or groups of people/things.
Ex: I’ll bring a book to read in case I have to wait for the train for a long time.
+ a person/thing or people/things that only the speaker or writer knows.
Ex: Yesterday, I saw a terrible accident. 
2.2. Countable and uncountable nouns/ noun phrases: 
- A countable noun/ noun phrase is a noun/ noun phrase that can be counted and used with a number. It can be singular or plural.
Ex: computer, computers, teacher, teachers, 
- An uncountable noun/ noun phrase is a noun/ noun phrase that cannot be counted and used with a number. It has no plural form.
Ex: money, sugar, rice,
2.3. Singular and plural nouns/ noun phrases:
- A singular noun/ noun phrase is a countable noun/ noun phrase that refers to one person or thing. 
Ex: child, book, well-behaved boy, funny story,
- A plural noun/ noun phrase is a countable noun/ noun phrase that refers to more than one person or thing. A plural noun/ noun phrase is generally formed by adding “s/es” after its singular form. Some have irregular forms.
Ex: two children, three books, well-behaved boys, funny stories,
2.4. Specific and general nouns/ noun phrases:
Nouns/ noun phrases of any kind (countable, uncountable, singular or plural) can be specific or general [3]. 
- A specific noun/ noun phrase is a noun/ noun phrase that is used to talk about some thing or things in particular. 
Ex: My dad's company made a profit this year.
 (profit = countable, singular, and specific) [3].
- A general noun/ noun phrase is a noun/ noun phrase that is used to make a generalization about some thing or things [3].
Ex: Money is necessary to live. (money = uncountable, and general) [3]
3. Table of basic rules: 
Articles
Rules
Purposes
Students’ Addition
a/an
- used before singular countable indefinite nouns/noun phrases. 
+ a: with nouns/ noun phrases beginning with consonant sounds.
+ an: with vowel sounds.
Note: it is the sound not the spelling that is important (ex: a unique experience, an umbrella).
- to refer to an unspecified member of a group/ class.
 I’d like to go to a concert tonight, but there’s nothing good on. [6]
- to mention something for the first time.
 I’ve had a great idea! [6]
- to talk about things generally. (formal English)
 A poet sees things differently. 
(= Poets see.)[6]
- to show what group someone/ something belongs to, or to classify it/ her/him.
 Liz is a modernist. [6]
The
- used before singular countable definite nouns/noun phrases. 
- to refer to a specified member of a group/ class, someone/something already known or mentioned.
 Is that the band you were talking about? [6]
 - to talk about things generally. (formal English)
 The guitar is one of the oldest musical instruments. 
 (= Guitars are.)[6]
- used before plural countable definite nouns/noun phrases. 
- to refer to specific people/things, or people/things already known or mentioned.
 The scales are balanced to symbolize equality. [6]
- used before uncountable definite nouns/noun phrases. 
- to refer to something specific, or something already known or mentioned.
 Who did the publicity for the show? [6]
- used before some adjectives to mean groups of people.
- to talk about things generally. (formal English)
 Pop music has always appealed more to the young more than the old.[6] 
Note: 
- used